A jetliner tragically hit a brown bear while landing in the dark of night, causing an alarming amount of damage to the jet — but, thankfully, a nearby cub narrowly survived.
It was an Alaska Airlines plane that got caught up in the freak accident early Saturday morning, with the flight coming in from Cordova, AK and touching down at the Yakutat Airport before the sun had come out.
According to reports, all normal procedures were followed prior to landing — airport personnel on the ground didn’t see the mama brown bear and her cub crossing the runway … this just 10 minutes after they’d done a scan and given the all-clear.
The plane struck the bear after it had landed and was coming to a stop, before taxiing to the gate. The aircraft’s left engine hit the bear, and was clearly damaged afterward. Considering the size of a 737 compared to your average car … you get a picture of just how dangerous an afternoon drive could be in Alaska.
No one on board the plane was injured, and a 2-year-old cub that was with its mom avoided the jet.
Folks in Alaska say they’ve seen animals like deer, caribou, geese and other critters getting swept up in a jet — but this might be a first for a bear.